No more nude scenes for Nandana Sen

After the controversial nude scenes in Ketan Mehta's Rang Rasiya, Nandana Sen got an offer from Italian filmmaker Italo Spinelli to play a tribal woman who's surreptitiously shot nude by a photographer.

She has however turned down the offer. The film is based on Bengali litterateur Mahasweta Devi's provocative and controversial story Choli Ke Peeche. Nandana was tempted, but she felt doing a full-on topless scene which is a crucial part of the narrative so soon after Rang Rasiya was just not wise.

"It's a good project directed by Italo Spinelli, produced by RAI, shot by Blasco Giurardo, the cinematographer of Cinema Paradiso. It's a powerful story and although I support it fully I feel the subject matter is such that the tribal girl's nudity cannot avoid becoming unintentionally voyeuristic and exoticised even though that is definitely not the objective," Nandana told IANS.

"If you remember, previously too I passed on various other international projects because of a similar concern," she added.

The project was to be started later this year, but her refusal has thrown it into back gear.

Rang Rasiya is a tribute to 19th century painter Raja Ravi Varma and Nandana plays the sensuous muse of the painter. Randeep Hooda plays Ravi Varma.

Talking about Rang Rasiya, she said: "The film focuses on the increasing critical topic of censorship of art. Remember what happened in the Jehangir art gallery last month? Ketan's film deals entirely with the freedom to paint the human figure in its natural beauty.

"The emotional drama as well as the political message of the film revolve around one critical and excessively talked-about scene of Sugandha, the muse, having the courage to break the rules of the time to pose for Ravi Varma (Randeep Hooda) and create a masterpiece of art together."